Who Had the Best Exclusives in Q2 2018? Sony vs Microsoft vs Nintendo

Sony

Obviously, any list of Sony’s Q2 endeavours this year immediately gravitates towards God of War, a game of the year contender and bonafide console seller. For a series that was running the risk of retreading familiar waters, this reboot did exactly what was required; it was stunning, poignant, and of course, unfathomably brutal. As of this moment, it sits atop the Metacritic rankings for 2018, tied with the Xbox One edition of Celeste with a majestic score of 94.

And they weren’t done there, either. Detroit: Become Human is one of the most gorgeous-looking games of this console generation, and the tale it told is a fascinating one. Its application may be clumsy in places, and it perhaps couldn’t quite withstand the pressure of its own ambition, but if you take it at face value, you’ll be in for a treat.

Rounding out the collection are the charming Sword of Ditto and remasters for Dragon’s Crown and Horizon Chase (a timed console exclusive), among other, less significant titles. Meanwhile, Yakuza 6: The Song of Life sits tenuously on the fence between quarters, released worldwide on April 17th, but with the English version first arriving in Asia by the end of March.

“Which quarter do you belong to, Kiryu-san?” we ask in desperation. He shakes his head sadly in response, for he himself is not certain, and in hindsight, he might not actually understand a word we just said.

Overall, this quarter has been fairly top heavy for Sony, without so many supplementary exclusive titles to help carry their weight, but Kratos is more than capable of shouldering the load like a grumpy version of Atlas.

Microsoft

With the way Sea of Thieves limped to the finish line in March, Microsoft’s projections for 2018 looked a bit more dire than anticipated, and that trend has unfortunately continued into Q2, as State of Decay 2 failed to impress.

Team green received a lot of excellent titles this quarter, with the long-awaited NieR: Automata feeling right at home on the Xbox One X, but strip away multi-platform releases and Sony’s sloppy seconds, and the catalogue is left threadbare. STAY was unique and showed great potential, but made too many mistakes that lamentably mitigated its strengths, while oOo: Ascension was just kind of… there. Honestly, you have to dig deep to find any console exclusives for Microsoft, let alone decent ones.

There is light at the end of the tunnel, with an E3 showing that was dedicated to bringing out some of their big guns; namely, Halo, Gears of War and Forza. To help bolster that, Ori and the Will of the Wisps and Cuphead’s Delicious Last Course DLC are almost surefire hits for 2019.

That is exactly the approach that Microsoft needs to take moving forward, but by then, they’ll have the likes of The Last of Us Part II, Death Stranding, Smash Bros. Ultimate, Spider-Man, Fire Emblem, and countless others to deal with.

Nintendo

Just as they’ve always done, Nintendo comfortably rode its niche; boasting a range of titles you simply can’t have anywhere else, albeit at the cost of third-party support. Casting your eyes forward, there appears to be a concerning list of AAA games that are snubbing Nintendo in favor of its more powerful rivals, but that’s another problem for another day.

The major player in Q2 for the big N was Mario Tennis Aces, and though it didn’t meet everyone’s expectations, it is still the best tennis title of the console generation, by far. The much-needed port for Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze breathed new life into a game that deserved more love in its first run, and the DK Adventure expansion for Mario + Rabbids added another chapter to last year’s sleeper hit. Notice a trend? Donkey Kong is absolutely killing it this quarter.

Throw in Sushi Striker: The Way of Sushido, the introduction of Nintendo Labo, and a port of Hyrule Warriors for good measure, and it’s clear that Nintendo put in the hours on the first party front.

Besmirched as it may be by the larger studios, the Switch continued to be a halidom for indie greatness, with Hollow Knight leading the charge. West of Loathing made for a surprising console exclusive, and Just Shapes & Beats is downright cathartic. Skies of Fury DX, FRAMED Collection, Pode… Though many of these games are little more than ports of existing Steam or iOS titles, the simple fact is that the Switch remains the home console of choice for indies.

Final Verdict

Anyone but Microsoft lol

You can take as many angles on this debate as you’d like, but in the eyes of all but the biggest fanboys, it seems clear that Sony ran away with the victory this quarter. For the sake of argument, take every other game out of the equation, leaving them with God of War as the only exclusive – and take your shot. Mario Tennis Aces? Nowhere near it. State of Decay 2? Smashed to pieces under Kratos’ iron fist.

Sony’s weakness this quarter turned out to be Nintendo’s strength, with the myriad of Nindies coming hard and heavy, but otherwise, the PS4 was dominant as usual. Observe further: if you were to rank the console exclusives for this quarter, Sony just may have claimed the top four spots, with only Tropical Freeze and Hollow Knight realistically posing a threat.

It should come as no surprise that one of the biggest releases for the PS4’s entire lifespan would make waves. The real challenge begins this month, as the three consoles jockey for position before entering the critical holiday quarter to close out the year. Those three consoles, incidentally, are the PS4, the Switch, and the 3DS.